Saturday, 10 March 2012

Friday photos

Friday was just wee bit nicer than Thursday for riding. That is, the sun was out, the roads were dry and I didn't have to swim my bike across any flooded intersections.

There are some cyclists out there who are just asking for trouble. I photographed this bloke not long after dawn - don't let the brightness of the photo fool you - the light was very dim at the time. He's got a black back pack on and black knicks, which makes him close to invisible from behind - and he was riding without lights fore or aft. Which makes him completely daft. If he keeps riding like this, he's going to get collected by a car one dark morning. And I wouldn't be blaming the driver if that happens.

This bloke had it right - bright lights front and rear and a vest that you could spot from several miles away.

Speaking of getting collected, it almost happened to me. I was going through a green light when a car coming from my left went straight through the red and turned left into the street that I was going into. It was only a bit of emergency braking on my part that stopped me slamming into his driver side door. I was so glad the roads were dry - if they had been wet, I doubt I would have pulled up in time. He gave me a bit of a surprised glance, and then floored it and took off. He proceeded to rat run through the back streets to get to the City West Link - probably a tradie in a stupid hurry to get to a job. It's not like the lights had just gone green for me - I had been proceeded by a bus and a truck through that intersection. I reckon he saw the truck go through, figured there was no other traffic behind it, and decided to run the red (it was early, when there was bugger all traffic about).

The bike paths were full of wimps on Friday - all the fair-weather cyclists who decided not to ride on Thursday because it was a "bit wet".

This set of lights is right outside the Harlequin Inn. I've often thought about stopping here for a beer, but I know that there are only a few possible outcomes if that happens.

I'll chunder halfway up the Anzac Bridge, or

I'll have more than one beer, and be going home in a taxi

The council spoilsports have put up a sign over on the right banning the drinking of booze outside the pub. I think it would pretty nice on a warm day to park the bike off to the right, grab a cold one and settle down to watch the world go by. But no, the wowsers think that is a Bad Thing. Curse the wowsers.